Bahrain beckons but Qatar is calling

STAYING MOTIVATED
I have returned to morning squash and swimming (as busying schedule permits) and really felt like last week was a success. The blog is working for me (I have now had 130 people view it and 19 Followers.) Watching these figures grow is very motivating.

LEFT: Staying on the front foot - a morning solo squash session. I won!

On weekends I've enjoyed several walks along the Bussattein corniche. If you haven't walked it, give it a go. You can walk along the paved walking track, then continue through the boat sheds and all the way to the very end, and walk back. It takes about 40 minutes. At 5.30 in the evening it is very pleasant.
LEFT: Views from Bussattein corniche show Bahrain's humble fishing beginnings and our burgeoning cityscapes

BAHRAIN JOBS
It has been a busy week. I left you all dangling last week after a call came in from Clarendon Parker just before I pushed the 'publish button' on last weeks blog. Well, Cara and James at CP have been looking after me and after a screening interview on Monday I had a meeting with the client on Wednesday. It went well and the fit would be excellent. An Arabic speaking contender is my only stumbling block. It is a premium job, premium company and will have its premium headaches in the short to mid term.....but a challenging and satisfying role none-the-less. CP placed me in my last position and they are very confident in pushing me for this role. I should hear something by mid this week.

LEFT: Going in for the interview. Tell 'em how good you are Greg!

Daniel at Talent Partners International has been helping me with some leads and advice and he is following up for me on another job in Qatar which is being handled by his Dubai office. I am registered with Bayt.com, Monster.com, GulfTalent.com and Al Jazeerajobs.com - I have a couple of suitable opportunities a week come in, but often find little success on cold applications on-line.

QATAR JOBS

I had a very funny phone interview for a position in Qatar this morning. The client had the MD and 2 people from HR on the line and they couldn't quite agree what questions to ask. They were all firing questions. I talked them through my CV, focusing on my most recent 4 years Bahrain experience and after that they had no more questions. The HR head was basically asking how soon I could start. It also seems like a great job, but I am concerned living in Qatar will not provide the same sense of community and freedoms that Bahrain offers. I am flying there tomorrow to meet with them and gauge the cost of living etc as an acceptable package will be determined by this.

LEFT: Dress rehearsal for tomorrow. Unsure of the custom in Qatar, but believe a more relaxed male business dress is acceptable

Both jobs look excellent, both quality companies, although each has a slightly different marketing timeline and priority focus, so in the short term they will each have quite different agendas until we get through this unsettling economic downturn

ON THE SOCIAL FRONT
Had a great night out at Bambu on Thursday night with Cindy Lee and co. We kicked on until pretty late. I think we drained Bambu of both food and liquid as we were the last to leave. Lots of fun though.

LEFT: It was a hot and we were thirsty. Good job by the Bambu team

SERENDIPITOUS OCCURRENCES

They say strange things happen - well I had 2 this week. Apart from a couple of job opportunities, I had 2 different people contact me to see if I was interested in getting involved in some creative projects. One is to write a song and conceptualise a corporate video and the other is to play in a band. The band offer came from an email that had gone around Bahrain and back and eventually landed in my Inbox. These are certainly the fun things that make the hard times much bearable. I think there are some stars in alignment at the moment. Thanks for the invitations guys. The band may fizzle out as these days, the acoustic guitar has replaced the feedback and drones of the old electric.

SIGNING OFF

Slightly differnt format this edition. I hope it is keeping you interested. I may do a mid week update if there is any news on the job front. So until then......bye for now.

Remember to forward this blog to anyone you think could help me get my next marketing communications, business development, advertising role.

I sent a small gift to all my 'Followers', so become a 'Follower'....it does pay. The 'Guess the Beach Competition' from my last entry is still open, so have go at winning the dinner for two.

Regards,

Greg Millard

+973 3946 4123